Yair Lapid, a former TV star who was not taken seriously by Israelis when he entered politics, has managed to gain credibility after ten years of involvement in Israeli politics, especially after he managed to oust former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from power. after he brought together the parties of all currents in one government.
At midnight Thursday and Friday, 58-year-old Lapid is to become prime minister of the Jewish state. When the former journalist left his TV job to found his Yesh Atid (there is a future) party in 2012, critics accused him of using his popularity as a successful presenter to attract the middle class.
In the January 2013 elections, he came in second after an election campaign targeted at the struggling middle class in Israel, who were protesting against the rising cost of living and exploiting a certain segment of the country’s economic growth. Yesh Atid MP Dov Lippmann says Lapid’s motivation to enter politics is not personal and has nothing to do with promoting his brand. “He didn’t need it, his economic situation was stable and he was popular,” Lippmann, who retired from politics and later left the party, told AFP. The former politician claims that Lapid “was in politics because he felt something needed to change in Israel.”
Problems
Lapid’s political path, which he began as Netanyahu’s finance minister, was exciting and challenging, as his critics bet on failure. But in 2015, he joined the opposition and became one of the most important leaders seeking to topple Netanyahu.
Nearly a decade later, Lapid has reached a major turning point in his political career and in erratic Israeli politics, and accomplished his mission: ousting Benjamin Netanyahu, the longest-serving Israeli prime minister accused of corruption. history, from power. In the legislative elections held on March 23, 2021, his party came second behind Netanyahu’s Likud, and after the former prime minister failed to form a government, the task was given to Lapid. On June 2 last year, Lapid signed an agreement to form a government coalition in alliance with three right-wing parties, including the ultra-nationalist Yamna Party, two leftist and two center parties, and the Arab Southern Islamic Movement. This rotational coalition won the confidence of the Knesset. Naftali Bennett headed the Israeli government, while Lapid was entrusted with the management of foreign affairs.
Bennett confirmed last week, saying the coalition could not continue, that he was committed to the deal. After the dissolution of Parliament and until elections are held, Lapid, who is Minister of Foreign Affairs, will take over as Prime Minister.
Days before his inauguration as Israel’s fourteenth prime minister, Lapid focused on the issue of the cost of living, the same folder on which the start of his political career was based. Lapid is facing this problem again, especially given the high prices seen in Israel. The coastal city of Tel Aviv was named the most expensive city in the world last December. The new prime minister also faces geopolitical issues centered around Iranian files and the Lebanese Hezbollah. “Even if we are approaching elections in a few months, the challenges we are facing will not wait, we need to address the issue of the cost of living,” he said.
new slap
On the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Lapid’s positions are mostly center-right, in contrast to Bennett’s far-right. Lapid prefers direct negotiations with the Palestinians to resolve the conflict, but questions their willingness to make peace and has even come out in defense of settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank.
The data suggests that Lapid intends to strike another blow at Netanyahu in the November 1 parliamentary elections. In the March 2020 elections, Lapid ran for the centrist blue-white coalition led by General Benny Gantz, but withdrew after Gantz struck an agreement with the Netanyahu government. Gantz’s popularity waned after that. He called the short-lived Netanyahu-Gantz unity government a “ridiculous coalition” and predicted its collapse, which actually happened.
Journalism and art
For Lippmann, Lapid’s commitment to the family, and especially his concern for his autistic daughter, demonstrates the character of the new prime minister. “As finance minister, his time was scheduled and limited … but he was eager to see his daughter every week, especially since her health did not allow her to communicate with him,” says Lipman. “I think this kind of leadership behavior is very inspiring and it shows the level of caring in his character.”
Lipman recalls how, as finance minister, Lapid refused the state-appointed car and driver.
Lapid was born in November 1963 in Tel Aviv, where his popularity is concentrated.
He started working for the Maariv newspaper, then moved to the Yediot Ahronot, the most widely circulated newspaper in Israel, and his name became well known in Israel because he was a columnist.
He has published dozens of books, composed and performed songs, and even played roles in films.
His father, Tommy Lapid, was a journalist before becoming Attorney General.
As for his mother, Shulamit, she is the author of well-known police novels in Israel, who published a series of investigations with the participation of a journalist.
Lapid boxed as an amateur and trained in martial arts.
Lapid, posing as a patriot, liberal and secularist, managed to close the ranks of the center, being criticized by the ultra-Orthodox.